2,300 civilians evacuated, infant rescued from under rubble in western Mosul
Workers remove rubble during the rebuilding of a building destroyed during fighting between Iraqi forces and Islamic state fighters, eastern Mosul, Iraq, April 21, 2017. REUTERS/ Muhammad Hamed
Spokesperson of the Joint Operations Command Brig.Gen. Yehia Rasool told Petra News Agency that the civilians were evacuated from Al-Shifa district and the boundaries of Mosul’s Old City. They were taken to eastern Mosul. The displaced, especially children, were in critical health condition.
The new bridge erected by Iraqi troops on Tigris River, according to Rasool, have become the safe exit from battlefields to liberated regions.
In related news, troops rescued an infant from under rubble of a destroyed house in Bab Sinjar district in western Mosul.
“While advancing through the Old City, Federal Police troops stormed a destroyed house that was previously shelled by Islamic State militants. Troops were able to rescue him as they hearing him crying among thirty other victims killed beside him,” Cap. Jabbar Hassan, of the Iraqi army, said.
The infant, who was below one-year old, was transferred to hospital for treatment, Hassan added.
On Sunday, joint troops of army and police invaded the districts of the Old City.
In January, the eastern side of Mosul was retaken after three months of battles. Another offensive was launched in February to retake the western side of the city.